Integrated farming needed for agricultural growth: Swaminathan

New Delhi, Sep 19 (IANS) India should focus on integrated farming to sustain the growth rate of four percent in agriculture, experts said here Friday.

'Integrated farming is needed to achieve a sustainable high growth rate,' said noted agriculture scientist M.S. Swaminathan at an agriculture leadership summit.

He said livestock was an important part of agriculture, and should be taken care of more effectively to increase farm output and enhance farmers' income.

Former agriculture minister Sompal said the government should have an independent budget for agriculture, which is currently part of the general budget.

'We have been spending only 1.3 percent of India's gross domestic product (GDP) for several years on agriculture that sustains 65 percent of the country's population,' Sompal said.

In the last budget, agriculture and allied sectors were allocated Rs.10,074 crore or Rs.100.74 billion.

The two-day summit beginning Friday has been organised by Agriculture Today, a monthly publication of the Centre for Agriculture and Rural Development (CARD), a local think-tank on farming and rural development.

India's GDP or its total market value of all final goods and services produced within a year, was officially estimated at Rs.31,14,452 crore or Rs.31,144.52 billion for 2007-08.

'We can effectively go for integrated farming if the government increases funds allocation for agricultrue,' said Sompal.